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Bristol Post
Bristol Post
Sport
Matthew Withers

Nigel Pearson must take some responsibility but he's right about Bristol City's passiveness

Every fan who pays their money has a right to their opinion and vent their frustrations.

I am not someone who boos a performance and I was uncomfortable hearing sections of the Ashton Gate crowd cheering 'this is embarrassing' but I don’t disagree with the sentiment and as I say everyone has the right to voice their feelings.

It was embarrassing! We played against the bottom of the table side, who for the last 30 minutes were down to ten men, and we never really looked like getting a win.

After the game, Nigel Pearson said how Peterborough were poor technically and how we were poor personality-wise. The Posh have endured a tough season and did lack quality but in the first half, they were the better of the two sides and could easily have taken the lead.

They hit the post and wasted a number of good opportunities. I agree with Pearson that personality-wise we were poor but not being able to pass and control the ball are technical things and we were poor at both of these.

Like with the jeering at the end, fans rightly have their own opinion on the manager. There are those who will point out that the squad is not blessed with enough quality and have too many players on high wages who are just going through the motions.

With huge debt and limited options, Pearson needs to reshape the squad and sometimes you have to take a step backwards to move forward.

I wouldn’t disagree with that but on the flip side, surely it is down to the manager and his coaching team to motivate and get the best out of what he has at his disposal. The likes of Ryan Lowe at Preston, Chris Wilder at Middlesbrough and in particular Steve Cooper at Nottingham Forest have all done that.

On paper, do sides like Luton Town, Huddersfield Town, Preston North End and Blackpool etc. have better players than us? The game isn’t played on paper and that is where management, motivation and coaching come in.

For the last 20 minutes, Pearson pretty much stayed sat in the dugout, leaving Curtis Fleming to shout out the instructions from the sidelines.

Pearson was asked why his side were so flat in the first half, which he couldn’t explain. He went on to say that it was nothing to do with technicalities and nothing to do with ability in terms of players. It was down to do with personalities and probably some collective character at times.

The manager also emphasised the need to change the players and if they don’t want to change, he'll change them. Either that or there will be a new manager and if that happens, the club will still have the same problem.

He also said how they will have to find a solution to the culture of passiveness, and how "it's a strange club in that regard."

Again, I don’t disagree with him. We are a club that have gone backwards on the field in recent seasons and I honestly think that we need to hear more from the owner and the chairman.

Bristol City failed to take advantage of 10-man Peterborough (Joe Dent/JMP)

Just what the owner thinks of comments like that from his manager in the week that season tickets have gone on sale, I would like to know. Where is Pearson’s responsibility in all this?

In yesterday’s game alone, Alex Scott once again was deployed in a right wing-back position that fails to get the best out of him.

Joe Williams was clearly not fit and played in a midfield alongside Matty James, a midfield that had little energy or legs. Peterborough went down to 10 men with over 30 minutes to play and yet it was a further 13 minutes before the pace of Antoine Semenyo was introduced.

Pearson said he couldn’t put up with players who turn up when they fancy it and when asked if some youngsters or fringe players might get an opportunity over the next few weeks, he said you’ll have to wait and see.

The team that takes the field on Good Friday away at Stoke City may be interesting.

We can debate all day long around the current squad but just how much is going to change in the summer?

Pearson again perhaps unwisely referred to the fact that there will be limited money available to spend in the summer transfer window.

Something that is pretty obvious I guess with £38m of losses but perhaps coming out and saying it that bluntly will do little to help season ticket sales.

Players on contracts who are not in the manager's plans have to want to leave but sometimes that is easier said than done. You still need to find a buyer.

In terms of the game, it was a game low on quality with very little to write home about. There were some decent performances from the likes of Rob Atkinson and Jay Dasilva but very little else.

Our 3 Peaps In A Podcast ratings were Daniel Bentley 5, Robbie Cundy 5, Timm Klose 6, Rob Atkinson 6, Alex Scott 4, Jay Dasilva 6, Matty James 5, Joe Williams 4, Andi Weimann 5, Nahki Wells 5, Chris Martin 5. A Team Average of 5.09 for the game. For Nige it’s 4. The current Team average for the season is 5.84 with an expected performance rating of 6.

The game and result spoilt another special day at Ashton Gate with the Bristol City Former Players Association celebrating City legends from the 50s and 60s. It was great to see so many of these past players and get to talk to them about their experiences at the club and just how much it had changed.

This sort of celebration along with what has gone before with the Ashton Gate 8 is long overdue and the club is now getting it right.

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